Comfort
by PippinPie
Summary: ONE SHOT. After returning from Skandia, Gilan comes to comfort Will after his ordeal. Contains Boy/Boy so if you don't like that, don't read. I hope you enjoy and please give feedback


**Comfort:**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the story Ranger's Apprentice or any of the characters involved in that series. I only own this idea. Now, without further hold-ups, let's get on with the story.**

As Blaze entered the clearing, Gilan grew nervous. For the whole journey he had been feeling mixed emotions over what had happened during the past year or two. As soon as Halt had taken on young Will as an apprentice his whole life had changed. When Will had been taken as a captive to Skandia, Gilan had felt so guilty. He had been so terrified that Will would not survive, that he would never get the chance to apologise for everything he had done wrong. Blaze wandered up to the cabin, and stopped to eat some of the grass. Gilan dismounted and wandered to the door of the cabin. Before he had the chance to knock, the door was opened by Halt.

"It's about time you showed up." Halt said. "Will has been waiting for you. Come in."

At that Gilan, having to bend over slightly to get through the door, entered the small cabin for the first time in a while. He glanced around the room, taking everything in. Not much had changed since the last time he had been there. He liked the look; clean and hygienic looking (Halt had probably been getting Will cleaning again). So hygienic you could probably perform surgery on the kitchen bench.

"Where's Will?" Gilan asked, glancing around the room again.

"He's in his room at the moment. Wasn't feeling up to training today. Would you like coffee while you wait?" Halt moved to the spotless kitchen bench pulling out the kettle. Gilan's eyes lit up at that.

"Is that a real question, of course I want coffee Halt."

Halt, muttering something about manners, started making coffee while Gilan sat down at the table. He removed the sword scabbard from his belt and placed it next to the table. "How has Will been lately?" Gilan asked in relaxed tones, but Halt could read through it to see how anxious his former apprentice actually was. He was getting good at pretending he didn't care too much.

"Why don't you ask him that yourself later," Halt said turning around. He finished making the coffee, pouring it into two mugs and bringing it to the table. He sat down across from Gilan. "I'm sure he will be out soon."

As if sensing he was wanted, Will emerged from a room on the left side of the cabin. Gilan looked around and his mood brightened considerably at the sight of Will. Will gave him a weak smile and came to sit down next to him.

"Hi Gilan," Will said in a small, tired tone. "It's good to see you."

"Good to see you too Will," Gilan said with a smile. He took a sip of his coffee. Halt made excellent coffee, but he decided it was too bitter for his liking. He stirred some honey into the coffee and then added some more for good measure.

They sat for a minute or two in silence, exulting in one another's company. Will began to shift nervously in his seat and Halt raised his eyebrows at him in question. With slight hesitation, Will asked, "Uh, may I speak to Gilan in private, Halt. It won't take long."

Halt nodded. "Yes, of course," He said without moving. Will, taking the hint stood up.

"Gilan, would you be so kind as to follow me?" Will asked. Gilan stood with a slight nod, gulping down the remainder of the coffee in his mug. He then followed as Will led him to the door he had emerged from when Gilan had arrived. He opened the door and motioned for Gilan to enter.

When they were both on the other side, Will closed the door and looked at Gilan. "So, how have you been Gilan? I hope that I didn't worry you too much. Sorry for not following your orders back in Celtica, it would have saved us so much trouble." He said this, scratching the back of his head and he grinned ruefully.

Gilan was surprised by his words. He had no reason to be sorry. "Will, you have nothing to be sorry for. Of course I worried, but that was because you were in danger. I didn't know if you would ever come back from Skandia. But you did the right thing by disobeying my orders. If you had not done what you had done at the bridge, we would not be here having this conversation right now. We would most likely be in the deepest, darkest cells in Morgarath's dungeons. You saved us, Will, and I am so proud of you. How long have you been beating yourself up over this?"

Will glanced away from the older man, a pink flush beginning to form on his cheeks. "Since the bridge. Evanlyn told me over and over again that what I had done was right, that there was no other way, but I refused to believe her. I thought that I was a failure, that there was something else I could have done." He walked over to sit on his bed. Gilan followed and sat down beside him.

"Believe me Will, you did the right thing. There is nothing else you could have done. If anyone is at fault, it's me. I should never have left you by yourself like that. It's all my fault that you were captured by the Skandians. I promised Halt that I wouldn't let any harm come to you and I would return you home safely. I failed. You were taken as a slave to Skandia and Halt had to clean up the mess that I caused and bring you home." Gilan said the last bitterly.

"You at fault? You did your duty, you did what you had to do. And my capture isn't your fault, it's mine." The tone of Will's voice indicated that this point was not open for discussion.

"So, what did the Skandians do to you?" Gilan asked abruptly, changing the subject.

At that Will looked up suddenly. "That's none of your concern. Anyway, I think it's time we got back to Halt, don't you? He might be getting lonely." Will began to rise from the bed but Gilan grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"Halt doesn't get lonely so easily." Gilan said in a firm voice. His tone then softened. "Will, I need to know what happened to you. If you don't tell anyone, how are they meant to help you?"

"I don't _need _help. Do you not get that?" Will glared down at Gilan.

Gilan looked as though he had been slapped. He had not expected that response from the young apprentice. He hadn't expected him to spill the beans either, but he had thought that Will would have at least been polite about it. "Sorry Will, I-I didn't mean to upset you. I was only concerned about you."

Will, realising his mistake, sat back down. "I'm sorry Gilan, I didn't mean to snap. It's just something I haven't told anyone about and I don't know how to go about it anyway."

Gilan, remembering how Halt had requested him to find out as much as possible and with his own worries and fears on top of that, wasn't entirely sure whether he should proceed. It was obvious that Will was uncomfortable discussing this with him. He reached for Will's hand and held it, rubbing it reassuringly. "Will, you know that you can trust me. I love you." He said, looking deep into Will's eyes.

Will, taking a deep breath, began to tell the story. The story of all the horrible things that had happened to him while he was a slave. Whippings, beatings and punishments for the most ridiculous things. He talked about the beginnings of his warm weed addiction, and his vague memories of when he was under the drug's influence. He talked about how he had feared that he would never make it back to Araluen and how he had punished himself for virtually killing the Princess of Araluen. Throughout the tale Gilan never released Will's hand; never once looked away from the tormented boy. He was horrified at how Will had been treated, but never let it show on his face. By the time Will was finished he had tears running down his cheeks. "It was horrible, Gilan. I'm so glad that you had not came to the bridge with me or else it would have happened to both of us and I couldn't deal with that."

Gilan leant forward and gently kissed Will lightly on the mouth. Even though it was gentle, Will felt as though his lips were on fire. He had always wanted to do this, but had never had the guts to. He closed his eyes and kissed back, his lips parting at the contact. Gilan, surprised at the reaction, buried his hands in Will's thick, dark hair. One thing led to another and they lay on the bed, Will hovering above Gilan, kissing him passionately. Will straddled the older Ranger and pulled off his shirt and began to work on the buttons of Gilan's.

Gilan pulled Will down on top of him and he pressed his lips onto Will's soft ones. His hands ran over the whip welts on Will's back, fingers tracing each individual scar. Will's breath caught in his throat as he remembered when and where he had got that, though he quickly regained composure. He was comforted by the thought that Gilan cared as much as he did, and he found comfort in Gilan's company.

"I love you, Will. You can trust me."

"I love you too."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note: I'm not sure how well received this fanfiction will be, because, you know, homosexual relationship (especially since it's GilanWill). But I have been wanting to write something like this for a while so here it is. Please give feedback in a review, I hope you enjoyed :D**


End file.
